(Original) Vader's Empire
by MissiriKoharehn
Summary: Sidious is dead, Darth Vader is Emperor, Mustafar didn't happen quite the same, and Starkiller is 8 years older than "canon" and second in command. But who's this Skywalker boy on Tatooine, and why is Obi-Wan blue? [Rearranged and reposted]
1. Prologue

Darth Vader had been... surprised, to say the least, when he found out how helpful teenage hormones could be in drawing the power of the Dark Side.

Mood swings, plummeting down to incredible depths of rage and hatred, came with their downside however: when they soared back up.

All this, he had learned while teaching his now 18 year old apprentice, Starkiller. Vader briefly wondered if he had been like that at that age. Something told him he'd been worse.

It's been eight years since he had found the boy, two since he had killed his Sith master-he was now Emperor of the galaxy-and 10 since the Republic gave way to the Empire.

But the boy was powerful in Force. Not nearly as powerful as himself, the Chosen One, but quite powerful; he would become a great Sith and worthy of continuing Bane's line of Sith. He was already very skilled with a lightsabre. If things had gone differently on Mustafar, perhaps he would even be close to Vader's equal.

Mustafar...

Vader remembered Mustafar, and the visions that had haunted him for many months after. Darth Sidious had "saved" his apprentice, arriving just before he made the fatal leap over Kenobi. The Jedi had escaped with his pregnant wife, and he was later told that Kenobi had killed both her and the child.

But for months after the incident, he would have nightmares, of a completely different result. Sidious wasn't there when he prepared to make the leap. He jumped, and Kenobi cut off all three of his real limbs, and he had been left to burn on the hot lava-river bank; soon afterwards, he was fitted in a new life support suit with a hissing respirator. And he was told that he had killed Padme.

He could only be glad that wasn't what had happened. Otherwise, he probably wouldn't have been powerful enough to overthrow Sidious and take the throne. Things were certainly quite messy back then, and the Imperial Navy was briefly left without a Supreme Commander. They definitely didn't take well to their new leader-a 16 year old Starkiller-but Vader didn't have anyone else, and he certainly wasn't going to promote one of the non-Force-sensitive Admirals or Moffs.

Right now, he was waiting for his apprentice to return from his latest mission: destroy slavery on Tatooine. When he had become Emperor he vowed to change many things that Palpatine had encouraged-political corruption and slavery being the two main ones he despised. Many of the politicians and Moffs had already been killed off. Slavery was another problem-it was everywhere in the galaxy, and he couldn't possibly hope to end all of it. Zygeria was only recently taken care of. Now Tatooine.

His personal holocomm unit alerted him of an incoming call, from his apprentice. He answered it, a blue Starkiller figure appearing in front of him.

"Master. The slaves on Tatooine have been freed."

"Good. Well done, my apprentice. You may return to Coruscant now." There was a pause, and then, "Is there anything else?"

"Yes, my Master. I have discovered another Jedi. I believe it is Obi-Wan Kenobi..."

* * *

 _A/N: Please review. I've been a reader for at least 2 years now... and this is my first published story. I never expected it to be about this *_*._

 _I do have a vague idea of what should happen next, but no guarantees on regular updates._

 _(BTW, my username used to be AmyMilo, and then KlashtaNeali, and now MissiriKoharehn. In case I've confused anyone.)_


	2. F-Kento Marek

_A/N: Disclaimer stuff... Star Wars is Disney's... And the following scene is mostly taken from The Force Unleashed game, presumably owned by LucasArts? I'm not actually sure *_*_

* * *

 _8 years ago_

Darth Vader strode out of the shuttle, black cloak billowing out behind him and shadowy hood obscuring his face, with dramatic imperial march music playing in the background... er... nevermind. His destination was clear: the spies had located another Jedi—Kento Marek on this planet of Kashyyyk. He could sense their location in the Force. He ignored a random Imperial officer's reports on the war on Kashyyyk, telling him he didn't care about the officer's failures and that he was here on a different matter, Force-choking the man to emphasize his point.

Before long, he reached a shabby hut of a house. The Jedi stepped out to meet him. They fought; the Jedi was disappointingly weak. _Then what is that bright presence I sense?_ He wondered.

The Jedi was nearly finished now. Vader slammed him around with the Force effortlessly, ending with Marek flying into his own house.

"I sense someone far more powerful than you nearby. Where is your master?" The Dark Lord demanded, Force choking him.

"The Dark Side has clouded your mind, traitor. You killed my master years ago!" He gasped out.

"Then now you will share his fate!" He raised his sabre, ready to make the final strike...

When he suddenly found himself empty handed, the sabre snatched out of his hand with the Force. He looked behind him. "A son," he realized aloud.

The boy, who seemed around the age of 10, raised the sabre threateningly. "Let my father go!"

"No, Galen!" The older Marek yelled, "Run!"

They were his last words. His distraction cost him, and Vader snapped his neck with the Force, letting the body crumple to the ground.

"No!" The boy yelled, swinging the stolen sabre at the Sith.

Just then, the Imperial officer from earlier arrived on the scene with a few stormtroopers. Seeing Lord Vader in "danger", he motioned for his men to fire on the boy.

Surprisingly, the boy—Galen—managed to block most of the blaster shots, before Vader decided that was enough and Force-pushed the stormtroopers to the ground. He took back his lightsaber with the Force, killing them all—he wanted no witnesses. No one will know about this boy, so powerful in the Force... _Starkiller. He will be known as Starkiller, and he will assist me in taking down the Emperor..._

* * *

 _Present_

"Obi-Wan Kenobi?! ...You are sure of this?"

"Yes, my master."

Of course. _Tatooine._ How could he _not_ have thought of it? It was so like his old master, to choose the one planet he hated most, that held the most painful memories.

And now... He would have to return, and add one more. Although, perhaps this one could finally be a good memory, the death of his beloved wife's murderer. He will finally have his revenge. For ten years he fantasized the best way to make that Jedi suffer, to make him pay for his horrible actions! There were no words to describe his hatred, loathe-detest- _despise_ ; they didn't even come close. And now he had his chance. Death would be a mercy—no, a blessing—for Obi-Wan Kenobi.

"Master?" Starkiller's voice interrupted his reverie. He seemed slightly unsettled by the sadistic grin on Vader's face, partly hidden underneath his hood.

He returned his attention to the holocomm. "Where is he?"

"I saw him in Anchorhead, and then he left for the Jundland Wastes. Should I follow him?"

"Find out where he lives, then return to your ship and then meet me in Bestine." He cut the transmission, still smiling to himself in eager anticipation.

* * *

 _A/N: Yup, still no action. *_*_

 _Uh, I promise we'll finally arrive on Tatooine next chapter, and maybe meet Obi-Wan/Ben?_

 _[Response to my one single chapter 1 reviewer that reviewed before I posted this: sorry, but the slave-freeing is limited to the background. I intended to have this be character-focused... Mostly about Vader, Starkiller, and later a certain blond 10-year-old strong in the Force...]_

 _...I want more reviews :(. Is my story that terrible?... Okay, yeah, I admit the summary and title were awful (prior to May 6). And my chapters are really (really) short. But hey, at least it should mean more frequent updates? I have some of chapter 2 (3?) done already, so it should be up soon... Maybe..._

 _Or would longer chapters (but probably really slow updates, as in a few weeks) be more preferable?_

* * *

 **Posted 5/6/15**


	3. Preparations

_A/N: Please don't hate on my OC. She really won't be playing much of a part in this story. There's just one paragraph or two. Less than 200 words._

* * *

He entered another frequency, to his men in the palace hanger bay. "Prepare my shuttle," he said simply, and then commed Ashané Blin. "I am heading to Tatooine. Keep things in order when I am gone."

Ashané was one of the more... _competent_ politicians. She had been more loyal to Vader than Sidious in the first place, which might have helped in her being chosen to "be in charge of things" while the new Emperor wasn't around—because he frequently wasn't, since he wasn't the type to sit around on a throne and attend meetings all the time. So she was the one that usually did that instead, minus the sitting on a throne part. She took care of the political side of things, giving His Majesty a condensed summary when he asked for it. She didn't ramble during those; she was practical, and she took instructions and knew him well. Darth Vader trusted her with the Empire, and she knew that if she messed up, more than just her _life_ would be at stake.

* * *

 _Tatooine_

Obi-Wan Kenobi, the hermit not-Jedi, could sense when Vader arrived on Tatooine-and when he did, he knew that his exile here was at an end. He wondered, for a moment, if he would be able to lead him off planet, and at least keep Luke safe... But he knew it was too late. He could sense the dark presence of the Sith drawing ever closer to his hut, and he knew his former pupil could sense him as well.

What surprised him, however, was the overwhelming _hatred_ that he could feel. What had he done, to be the target of such hate? He thought back, but he could not think of anything other than that he had failed his brother and friend.

He wouldn't need to worry for much longer. Vader was approaching, on speeder. He would be here anytime now.

Obi-Wan remembered sensing the other dark presence, earlier in Anchorhead on a supply run, and then recognizing the new Empire's second-in-command, Lord Starkiller. He was almost certain that he was Vader's apprentice. He had sensed that Starkiller was quite powerful in the Force, probably more so than himself in his current state. He'd also heard the rumours about his youth, but he wasn't sure what to make of them; he wore his Sith armour and mask/helmet almost everywhere.

Obi-Wan knew that he would have to keep Luke safe, and a secret, from the Empire. The Emperor—his father—can _not_ know about him, the galaxy's last hope... of course, there was the twin sister, Leia, but she was half a galaxy away.

He could only hope that he would be able to communicate with the twins through the Force after he died, the way Qui-Gon had taught him over these years.

Vader was nearly here now. The apprentice was not with him.

He knew it was useless to try and refresh his lightsabre skills now, after being out of practise for ten years, but he would not go down without a fight. He clipped the long-unused lightsabre to his belt, the weight that was once comforting, now only a reminder of what was to come.

He settled for meditating just outside of his hovel while he waited for Vader to arrive.

Before long, Vader's presence was only a few metres away. It seems he had walked here, and left his speeder a ways off.

"I've waited 10 long years for this moment, _Kenobi_." Vader's surprisingly calm voice brought him out of his meditation, and he stood, brushing sand off his clothes.

"As have I. Though, I wouldn't have minded waiting a few years longer."

* * *

 _A/N: The new cover image depicts Starkiller in his "Sith Stalker" armour. You can Google him to see what he looks like without the helmet/mask._

 _I know the chapters are really short, but they're probably going to stay that way, I think. My updating goal is to post a new chapter when my story has been "pushed" to the 3rd or 4th page in the Star Wars category listings, or when the total number of visitors (for all my stories) is less than 50 by ~8pm EST. And also because I write the chapters a few lines at a time, and I want to post what I have whenever I find a good place to leave off._

 _Yes, I decided that this would be a good place to leave off, even though there's still been zero action._

 _Oh, and since nobody has complained about cliffhangers yet, I'm going to do my best to keep leaving them as much as possible. ;)_

 _This is getting long, isn't it?... I still need to thank my reviewers... Well, anyways, thank you to all my reviewers! The best reviewers so far have been guest reviews, so special thanks to all those. I'll respond to member reviews if they have a question, or is of reasonable length, but any length is fine if you a) don't have time, or b) are too lazy :p._

* * *

 **Posted 5/8/15**


	4. F-Galen Marek

_A/N: The following flashback scene directly continues from the previous one._

* * *

 _8 years ago_

Darth Vader had been expecting resistance, so it came as no surprise to him when the boy tried to run. He restrained him easily with the aid of the Force.

They were making their way back to Vader's shuttle, and leave the planet. Galen clearly had different ideas, but even someone as young as him could tell it was pointless to struggle against the tall, cloaked figure, even if he had killed his father just moments ago. And then he'd saved him—but why?

"Where are we going?" He finally asked.

"We are leaving this planet. War will be here soon."

They walked in silence for a few moments, but not for long when there was a curious child bursting with questions but afraid to ask them.

"Why? Why did you... why did you do it? Why aren't you killing me too?" he asked, his voice too bitter for a ten year old, too innocent to be asking such questions.

"Your father was a Jedi. Surely you knew that they are traitors and enemies of the Empire." Vader replied, avoiding the second question. The boy didn't need to know about his true purposes yet. That would be revealed in due time.

"You killed him." They had reached the shuttle, and were getting on board now, ready to leave. "I _hate_ you," he choked out, tears finally starting to fall.

"Many people do," the Sith replied, almost monotonously. Galen could not see his face. He seemed completely passive about the accusation.

Vader knew that it would take a while until he convinced the boy that his father and the Jedi were bad, and the Empire good—except the Emperor, of course. Soon, when the boy realizes his own power... Vader would have to make sure that he is not the target for his Dark Side fueling hatred.

* * *

 _Present_

Obi-Wan regarded his former apprentice with a mixture of sadness and regret. He hadn't seen him in 10 years, except a few times on the holonet reports, and he always wore his hood and cloak in those.

Now, without the cloak (he had probably taken it off in anticipation for the fight), Obi-Wan could see him clearly. Anakin—no, Vader now—looked almost the same, and yet at the same time he seemed so different. Where ice blue eyes once shone with the determination to save lives, now there were only golden ones with determination to kill. His boyish smirk was gone, a disgusted sneer mixed with a sadistic grin in its place.

And the _hatred_ —it rolled off him in waves through the Force, and Obi-Wan wondered again what had caused such hatred.

"Spare me your dry humour, old man. We both know why I am here," Vader said.

Obi-Wan was certain that it was nothing more than him being one of the last surviving Jedi, and being his old Master, the Emperor had deemed it fit to come kill him himself. But then said Emperor continued, "The death of my wife and children will be avenged," and Obi-Wan was thrown into confusion—but there was no time for him to question or reply, for just then Vader ignited his crimson sabre and leapt at the ex-Jedi Master.

* * *

 _A/N: I've had this written and ready for some time, so by now I already have most (if not all) of the next chapter done as well, but I want to stay by the established schedule. I can finally **promise** that the fight will be next chapter! Though, if you're looking for detailed action description, you'll be sorely disappointed :(._  
 _This chapter is a few words too short to me, and I tried to make it longer, but I couldn't find a better place to leave off or anything good to add._  
 _Flashbacks will appear every other chapter. However, if readers really hate them and would prefer focus on the present storyline (since they take up most of the chapter), then I'll probably try to make them shorter or less frequent. The flashbacks are (or will be) important though._

 _Replies to guest/comment reviews: Thank you to all of you that left comment* reviews; they are still very much appreciated! Oh, and to guest "ElsaSkywalker", I recommend getting a site account; it would be easier to follow stories. In any case, I'm very glad you all like my story. :)_

 _*I define comment reviews as anything that is simply commenting (usually complimenting :) on the story, without questions; it does not mean the reviews are bad or inferior._

 _This A/N got so long x_x_

* * *

 **Posted 5/11/15**


	5. Desert Duel

Obi-Wan barely had time to ignite his own sabre and bring it up to block the crushing blow, but block it he did, and for the second time the Chosen One faced the Jedi that was once a brother to him, this time not on a lava planet, but on a desert one.

The past 10 years had not been kind to Obi-Wan Kenobi. He had gone horribly out of practise in his exile. Vader, however, had been training and fighting for the same 10 years. As blue clashed on red and the two Force-users battled it out on the desert sands of Tatooine, it soon became clear who would win.

This was not Mustafar, when Obi-Wan was in his prime. Granted, it had hurt so much more to be fighting his freshly-fallen brother, while now he was used to thinking of Anakin as dead and Vader having taken his place. But Vader had only just begun experiencing the Dark Side then, and now he was all but a Master at it.

As the flashing battle moved across the sands, Obi-Wan was forced farther from his small hut, until it was quite a ways in the distance.

His former Padawan chose this time to speak up again. "I will take great joy in giving you as slow and painful of a death as possible," he growled as their sabres locked again, "you will pay for killing Padmé!"

There it was again—the accusation that _he_ had killed the late Senator Amidala, who had died tragically in childbirth. Obi-Wan replied the next time they broke apart.

"I didn't kill Padmé and I don't know what you're talking about," he said quickly. His thoughts once again turned to young Luke, far off at the Lars homestead. If he told Vader about his son, it would prove Padmé wasn't killed, but it would put Luke in danger of being taken and trained in the Sith ways.

"Don't lie to me, Obi-Wan! You killed her, I know it!" He yelled, as they swung their sabres, the fight continuing on.

"And who told you that?!"

"Palp—Sidious! Wait..." Vader suddenly hesitated, however briefly, and it gave Obi-Wan hope.

Before Vader fell back into his rage, Obi-Wan cut in, "He was lying. I didn't kill her. I was there when she... When she died in childbirth."

For a moment, it seemed Vader had believed him. He looked horror-struck, even taking half a step back. But then denial fell in, the Dark Side comforting him with rage and the promise of revenge. "Liar," he snarled, and he charged at him even more fiercer than before.

Soon, Obi-Wan was beginning to tire. He couldn't hold out for much longer. Again, he thought of Luke, the Jedi's—the _galaxy's_ —last hope. He could not be allowed to follow in his father's footsteps. He could not be found. _He cannot be discovered. He cannot be discovered._ Subconsciously he began repeating it like a mantra, his mind filling with worry.

"Your thoughts betray you, old man. You're concerned over someone... Who is it?! I will find him and make him suffer as much as you will!"

He did his best to ignore the threats. _For Luke,_ he thought, then desperately tried to squash the thought. He couldn't be thinking about him. Vader would sense his thoughts.

"I sense it... a Padawan, isn't it?! You have been training a Padawan all these years! I will force them to watch as I torture you to a slow, painful death, and then do the same to them!"

 _No... You can't... He's your..._ Again, Obi-Wan thrust the thought away from his mind, returning his focus to the battle at hand. But the thoughts were distracting. Soon Vader had him disarmed, his lightsabre flying off into the distance—along with a portion of the hand that had held it.

He winced in pain, stifling a yell into a grunt, as he stumbled backwards a couple steps away from the Sith Lord. A red lightsabre swung into view, the blade hovering at his neck.

He looked up defiantly at its wielder. "If you strike me down, I shall become more powerful than you could possibly imagine," he said, forcing himself to ignore the pain in his hand.

"Enough of your lies, Kenobi. I do not plan to kill you—yet. First, I must find your Padawan, and together you will die in the most agonizing way possible. His presence... It shines bright in the Force. It seems you have failed to teach him even the simplest shielding techniques."

"I don't have a Padawan. The Dark Side must be clouding your mind."

Obi-Wan had no idea how much the situation was reminding Vader of his fight with Kento Marek. Vader half-expected his lightsabre to fly out of his hands into a young boy's—

"Ben?! No, stop! Don't kill Ben!"

 _...Close enough._

* * *

 _A/N: Wow. That was completely unplanned. Those last few sentences jumped on me out of nowhere, but it was either that, or I'd have to cut this fight into two sections, and I wanted Luke to appear in this chapter. It kind of ruined my short-term plans for the next few chapters. I wasn't really sure how to continue from here, or why the heck Luke is at Obi-Wan's house... but then again, the fight did move quite a ways away from it, didn't it? I think I've figured something out though, so there shouldn't be too much of a wait._

 _Right, that reminds me; maximum time between updates will no longer depend on anything, while minimum time is "when it's no longer on page 1". I hate having an update schedule, or any deadlines whatsoever. I will write when I feel like it. (Which is pretty often, so you don't need to worry too much. ;)_

 _Also, this has been my longest chapter (story content only) so far! Yay?..._

 _Finally, thank you to all my reviewers for last chapter, especially "Penstrokes of Death", who's reviews has changed the course of the story and future chapters. Thank you to the rest of all the reviewers, followers, and favouriters; I am glad for the support! :)_

 _Also, criticism is not unwelcome! If there is something you don't like about the story, you can mention it in the review! I always look to improve :)_

* * *

 **Posted 5/13/15**


	6. F-Darth Vader

_A/N: Flashbacks will no longer be in chronological order. Due to popular request, Juno Eclipse will indeed be appearing in a later flashback chapter, but this flashback got too long so the next one will be a continuation. Urgh, I have so many flashback ideas, but I have to wait for every other chapter... X(_

* * *

 _2 years ago_

When the Emperor told him via holocomm that he would be coming to check on the progress of the _Executor_ , Darth Vader knew the time had come to end Palpatine's reign. He wasn't sure why he had picked this time to do so—in fact, he felt that Sidious probably knew and planned something—but the Force whispered promises of victory.

 _Through victory, my chains are broken... The Force shall free me..._

He knew that soon, within the next few days, he would finally be free. No Master would ever tell him what to do again. It may have seemed like a childish thought, but neither Anakin nor Vader had ever been free, not as a child, not as a Jedi, not as a Sith. But now he will be.

Starkiller, on the other hand...

The boy had grown, and not just in age. Through Vader's intense and quite brutal training, he had become extremely powerful in the Force, rivalling that of many great Jedi Masters. But he was not quite ready yet to face the Emperor, at least Vader certainly didn't think so.

But Vader was ready. He had to strike now. He was powerful enough by himself; he was the supposed _Chosen One!_

Of course, it never hurt to have backup. Starkiller could at least provide that. And if he failed, then he was not worthy to continue the line of Sith.

He'd become very good at hiding his thoughts from his Master. He had also taught Starkiller the strongest shielding techniques possible, so that he was capable of completely shielding his presence from others. Although, this would all be for naught if Sidious somehow already knew of the boy.

Vader didn't know how though; he had made sure the place was secure, that no one knew there was a living being on board.

No matter. The Force was telling him to strike now, and he was not going to disregard it.

The Emperor's shuttle was due to arrive later today, in mere hours. He had already instructed Starkiller on his role. The boy would wait in the shadows (which the current settting considerably lacked), and would only join in when Vader was obviously losing—something that would hopefully _not_ happen. Starkiller would only be backup, but backup was important too, and there was not much else the 16 year old could do.

* * *

 _Present_

 _So this is Kenobi's Padawan,_ Vader thought. It was just like the Jedi to have been training a child so young—it was almost unsettling, how similar in age he seemed to Galen Marek when Vader had found him. He also shone just as brightly in the Force as Galen had, if not brighter.

"Luke, no!" a voice called out, and Vader was surprised that it wasn't Kenobi. Instead, it was another man, possibly the boy—Luke—'s father or guardian. He was in a landspeeder and in the process of getting out. Luke, it seemed, had already scrambled out of the speeder and was making his way towards the two, only for the man—who was starting to seem ever so slightly familiar—to grab him and hold him back.

Vader turned back to Obi-Wan, who he'd pinned onto the ground with the Force. "So, your Padawan has arrived. I will enjoy having him watch you suffer." He raised his left hand, the one without the prosthetic, and bright blue lightning crackled forth.

* * *

 _A/N: This chapter was awfully hard to write. I'm surprised I even managed to finish it so soon, though it is kind of short. Anyways, I really don't like this chapter much since hardly anything is happening. And I just know that the next one_ _is going to be even harder to write, since I know_ _what_ _I want to happen, I just don't know_ _how_ _to make it happen, or how to write it well. So it might be a little later than usual._

 _Anyways, thank you again to all my reviewers, followers, and favouriters for your support! I'm glad [evil laugh... heheh...] that my cliffhanger was... a good cliffhanger? ;)_

 _Again, special thanks to "Penstrokes of Death" for helping with the chapter, as well as the next few coincidentally since I decided to split the flashback._

 _...ya, that's all *_*_

* * *

 **Posted 5/15/15**


	7. Revelations

_A/N: Lots of mentions of torture. Nothing graphic... but, still. Force Lightning and the like._

* * *

Owen Lars was quick to pull young Luke away from the scene, turning him away and covering his ears, in an attempt to block out the sounds of Obi-Wan's screams of pain. He had never expected a trip to trade with the Jawas would turn out this way. Of course, he probably should never have listened to Luke when he started insisting that they "just had to" go in "that" direction, seemingly pointing randomly. _And look how that turned out_ _,_ he thought. _I never should have humoured the boy_.

Luke had burst into tears when he heard the screams, burying his face into Owen, with occasional mumbles of "Ben". Owen began to pull Luke back into the speeder, eager to get away from the scene.

Vader, who was enjoying his former Master's agony, suddenly stopped the attack of Force Lightning. Obi-Wan weakly managed to lift his head to look up—only to see Vader using the Force to pry Luke away from his uncle and face the two Force-users.

Turning back to face his victim, Vader said, "Your Padawan _will_ watch as you suffer... and then, when you are near your death, I will keep you alive and watch _him_ suffer in turn!"

Obi-Wan braced himself for another round of Force Lightning, but instead, Vader approached him, his lightsabre ignited again and swinging it about casually. He immediately caught on to what was about to happen.

*detailed torture scene skipped because of rating... though, I would've just _loved_ to write it...*

Luke was still sniffling, unable to bring his hands up to cover his ears, and his uncle unable to help him as well. He watched and heard as the man whom he'd only known as Old Ben Kenobi was slashed repeatedly in non-vital areas by the Sith Lord's searing red lightsabre.

Finally, the lightsabre was shut off and put away. Obi-Wan could only guess at what that meant, his mind finding it difficult to focus on the situation through the pain and heat. It seemed, he realized belatedly, that Vader was to give one final onslaught of Force Lightning, both higher in intensity and so many times more painful due to all the lightsabre burns he now had.

When it finally stopped, Obi-Wan was sure he was almost dead. Vaguely, he thought that that was supposed to mean something. He was near death. Something was going to happen. Something bad. Important. Urgh... Why was it so hard to think? Something... it meant something... nearly dead...

 _LUKE!_

His eyes and ears weren't working very well anymore, but he could still access the Force. He could sense Vader's presence approaching Luke, as well as the boy's overwhelming fear radiating through the Force intensely. He did not overestimate Vader's conscience. Vader said he would torture Obi-Wan's supposed "Padawan", and so he would. It didn't seem to matter whether he could see or not now; the Sith knew that Obi-Wan would be able to feel Luke's pain.

This couldn't happen. This couldn't be happening, Obi-Wan thought. Vader, here; Luke, about to die; the galaxy's hope, lost... himself, lying on the ground and dying. He didn't mind the last one all that much, actually. He knew his mind/spirit would still be alive through the Force. But Luke...

Luke couldn't die. Obi-Wan could not let that happen. It no longer mattered what would happen to him; it no longer mattered if he were to become like his father. Right now, it only mattered that he _live_.

Obi-Wan was exhausted, dying, and in agonizing pain, but he had to let his last statement be known. And so, with a feeble attempt to wet his lips slightly, he forced the words out, making sure to amplify his voice (and at the same time giving himself just a bit more strength) with the Force, to ensure Vader would hear him—simultaneously he projected the thought through the Force just in case:

" _ **He is your son, Anakin...! Luke... Skyw... wal...ker... ..."**_

* * *

 _A/N: ...Wow... that was surprisingly easy to write. I finished_ _way_ _ahead of schedule.  
I'm sorry (not sorry) to say that I absolutely loved this chapter. I'm a sadistic person ;)  
Well, there you have it, the most suspensefully cruel cliffhanger I've left so far... or was the one in chapter "Desert Duel" worse?_

 _Anyways, I'm posting this a little early, for my own special reasons :p. After this I think I'll take a little break, and not just because I'm doing my first Sidious POV next chapter and you have no idea how hard it is to write his character accurately._

 _Thanks again to all the followers, favouriters, and reviewers for last chapter._

* * *

 **Posted 5/17/15**


	8. F-Darth Sidious

_A/N: This flashback directly continues from the previous one._

* * *

 _2 years ago_

When Darth Sidious had made the holocomm call to his apprentice, betrayal was not on his mind. Oh, he knew the power of the Chosen One, but he was quite confident that the younger Sith still needed him, that he would not be willing nor able to kill his master just yet.

After all, only 8 years had passed. Surely he could not have already found and trained an apprentice of his own? Sidious's spies had found no evidence of treacherous plots so far. Although, he did wonder sometimes what had Vader so interested in the Executor's construction, but then again, his apprentice had always had an interest in ships and mechanics.

And thus, he arrived on the incomplete _Executor_ with only the intention of checking on it, as well as maybe seeing what Vader was up to, always being at the site. Truthfully, he hadn't much interest in the ship, but seeing as it would be one of the first of the Super Star Destroyers, he thought it wouldn't hurt making a quick tour of the place.

He had already chosen his "tour guide"—who better than Lord Vader himself? After all, he was sure to know the ship inside and out by now, according to how much time he spent here.

The ramp of his transport hissed open, and with the camera panning from bottom to top dramatically and ominous music playing... er... nevermind, he descended down, flanked by a group of four Red Guards.

Darth Vader was already there waiting. There was nobody else, since the entire ship construction crew was made up of droids. The Sith Lord dropped to one knee in front of the Emperor.

"My Master," he greeted as usual.

"Rise, Lord Vader," Sidious responded, satisfied.

Vader stood back up, and continued, "I have the tour route planned. Should we begin?"

"Lead on, my apprentice." And with that, the two Sith and four Royal Guards began the tour of the _Executor_ Super Star Destroyer.

.-*-.-*-.~later~.-*-.-*-.

"...And this is will be a viewport of the _Executor_ ," Vader was saying. They had arrived at a very large open area, with a transparisteel viewport. Sidious could see the dark depths of space from here, but he wasn't very interested.

"Yes, yes. Is the tour finished?" he asked simply, taking a few steps further into the vast room.

Behind him, Vader's hooded head gave a nod, and then there was the sound of a lightsabre slash and four bodies falling to the ground.

 _Wait, what?!_

* * *

 _Present_

Darth Vader's scarlet-red lightsabre froze mid-strike, its blade mere inches from the boy's prone body. Shock, horror, devastation, confusion, revulsion, betrayal; those were only a few of the multitude of emotions racing through the Dark Lord's mind.

 _A son. A son. Son. Son! Child! Padme! Obi-Wan—Sidious—Lies, so many lies—_... He took an uncertain step back, his extinguished sabre falling harmlessly out of his hands onto the sand.

He was not the only one who had heard Obi-Wan's final cry, however. Luke's eyes snapped open from after he'd closed them in terror, upon hearing the life-shattering words through the Force in his mind. _This... this is Anakin Skywalker? This is my father?_

It seemed the only one who was still unaware of the situation was Owen, who was caught between utter bewilderment at the sudden pause, and using the opportunity to get Luke to safety. Being non-Force sensitive, he hadn't heard the stunning revelation, and was thus completely confused as to why Vader had shock written all over his features and had taken a step back.

* * *

 _A/N:_ **_ATTENTION READERS WHO HAVE BEEN FOLLOWING THE STORY BEFORE THIS CHAPTER! FLASHBACKS HAVE BEEN MOVED AND SEPARATED TO A STORY CALLED "RISE OF VADER'S EMPIRE"!_**

 ** _THIS STORY HAS BEEN REARRANGED AND REPOSTED AS A SEPARATE STORY, WITHOUT FLASHBACKS, CALLED "VADER'S EMPIRE"; THIS STORY IS RENAMED TO "(ORIGINAL) VADER'S EMPIRE" AND WILL NO LONGER BE UPDATED!_**

 _...Yeah. Sorry for the caps lock. *_*_


End file.
